In the course of reality TV’s 20-some-odd years golden era, a cheating scandal is almost as certain as a public screaming match in an unsuspecting local restaurant. In today’s reality TV climate, however, scandals, wrongdoings, and grievances—and how these stars choose to address them—have the power to reverberate much farther, thanks to social media and their various fandoms.

A fascinating PR strategy in controlling these types of messy narratives comes in the now largely expected rebuttal to any scandal: the revenge dress. It’s a topic that is once again at the forefront of fans’ minds thanks to the Bravo betrayal du jour by Summer House cast members Amanda Batula and West Wilson in the wake of their respective relationships with Kyle Cooke and Ciara Miller. And on part one of the Summer House reunion, which aired this week, Miller entered the stage in an illusion two-piece dress from fashion insider fave Di Petsa’s spring 2026 collection that could only be classified in modern terms as, well, a revenge dress. “Di Petsa is one of those designers that creates pieces that instantly make you feel confident and powerful the second you put them on,” Miller tells Vogue. “For me, it was less about the dress itself and more about how I felt walking into the room—just feeling fully confident in myself.”

The concept was originally coined when Princess Diana wore a black cocktail dress, designed by Christina Stambolian, during a very public outing on the same night that King Charles admitted to infidelity on national television in 1994. Now, the royal wasn’t a reality TV star per se, but she, the dress, and King Charles’s affair, were certainly the face of a rapidly changing popular culture and media landscape, as demonstrated by the fact the dress now has its own Wikipedia page. Its form-fitting silhouette and off-the-shoulder cut were, believe it or not, quite daring for its time, and, at the very least, were a significant departure from the modest habits of royal dressing. The idea of a revenge dress quickly became a sartorial marker of the start of a new phase of life, and other famous examples followed suit, such as Mariah Carey’s sexy Calvin Klein two-piece ensemble at the 1997 MTV Music Video Awards or Elizabeth Hurley’s plunging Valentino gown in 2000.

But what makes a good revenge dress? And what classifies one as such? The parameters have certainly widened—there’s a large difference between stepping out the same day as a national broadcast about the dissolution of your marriage and making any public appearance in the wake of a split. But, today, the moniker is usually applied to a very sexy look that, to the public, declares “victory.” The star looks great and has moved on—you should too, after all, her great sense of style is a much more fun topic of conversation. After the release of her tell-all album West End Girl, Lily Allen appeared at the 2025 CFDA Awards in a white barely-there lace top and floor-length skirt by Colleen Allen, showing off her entire torso. Bonus points for sporting one of New York’s most talked-about designers.

The women of the Bravo-verse are, unfortunately, no strangers to needing one, either. In fact, they may be solely fueling the industry at this point. The then-Vanderpump Rules star Ariana Madix stepped out to the season 10 reunion in an ab-baring red Mônot dress to confront her ex-partner of a decade, Tom Sandoval, while Lindsay Hubbard donned an asymmetrical cut-out LPA look for the Summer House reunion following the end of her engagement to fellow castmate Carl Radke. (Forget the revenge dress, a matching shredded revenge body is the greatest rebuttal of all.) In Miller’s case, since the scandal broke before the reunion’s filming and subsequent release, there’s also been a bit of what can only be dubbed a full revenge dress tour: The star has glowed in recent appearances, including a custom “bumster” Erik Charlotte creation as an E! News correspondent for this year’s Met Gala.

Since Princess Diana first stepped out of the car in that wrapped off-the-shoulder dress, sartorial payback has taken on quite a few different forms. However when it comes to crafting the perfect look, one classic idiom rings true: Revenge is a dish best served cold, and there’s nothing more chilling than a piping hot dress paired with an unshakeable confidence.